The Flower Girl
by Basket Case104
Summary: A story about Aeris... don't read if you haven't passed disk one... review plz!


**The Flower Girl**

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"I know she's here somewhere. She has to be." Cloud said. 

"I know we can find her, we can't give up hope! Be strong Cloud." Said Tifa.

"I, hope she's okay..."Cid said.

As the team an endless winding staircase made of crystal Cloud peered down and saw the end of the stairs. The others were getting restless and feared the worst for her.

As they reached the bottem Cloud had felt the same feeling as when Sephiroth took control. He was stopped by the dead cold and took a step back.

"What's wrong Cloud?" Tifa said.

Tifa had always had feelings for Cloud but instead of following what she always wanted shetryed to go on excepting the fact that he would never feel the same.

"Nothing, nothing at all..."Cloud said with a sigh.

Cid was also depressed about the issue. Cid was not one to talk about his feelings so he kept quiet.

Cloud started moving again and the others followed. Cloud's never been clear of his mind, but he try's to avoid the truth whenever he gets too close. They came upon a little lake.

The lake had stepping stones that grew about three or four inches higher as they went up. Cloud, never turning his head up, came upon the lake with his eyes to the floor.

"Cloud, look!!"Tifa exclaimed.

He raised his head about halfway up untill he felt his back hairs raise. He had a horrible feeling. Then his head jerked up to look straight at a face.

It was beautiful. Her brown flowing hair that almost touched the bottem of her back. Her hair was wrapped in a long ponytail that twisted around as it came down. Her green eyes were so beautiful and clear.

Her face was bright and cheery and she always had a warm, welcoming smile. Her smile had always effected Cloud because whenever he saw it he felt the feeling of happiness and it was as if when she smiled did all her life, feelings, and derams did she out pour.

She was kneeling down on her knees praying for holy, a magical, mistic force in witch was to save the planet from a meteor that was being guieded to earth by an evil man cloaked in darkness for eternity, Sephiroth.

She prayed for all people, for the Ainchents witch were all destroyed but herself, for her friends, for future generations, and mostly, for the life of the planet. What she said to be her "usless magic", her materia, her mother's last, and oly memento.

It was sparkling and flickering in the light and it also had a warm and raideint glow, looks like a pale green glow. Cloud felt a rush of happiness, knowing she was safe, and they come out together. The rush of happiness swept through him like brush fire. His heart was telling him to run to her, run, till you reach her. Till you can grab her and know, everythings okay... but he couldn't move...

"What's the matter, Cloud? Please, let's go to her."Tifa said, but she got no reply.

"The hells wrong wit you boy? Grab the chick an let's get outta here! This place is creepin me out!"Cid said, relived that she's okay, but is egar to leave.

He didn't get a reply from Cloud either. Cloud clenched his fists into two tight balls as they started to get sweaty and clammy. Just then he felt the darkness rush through him again.

As the surge of darkness washed over him, it was infecting him, not physically or visably, but mentally. Cid and Tifa wore puzzled looks on their faces, as they exchanged glances they decided to try and jump one of the stone pillar's, all of a sudden, Cloud jerked his hand up into the way of the two of them.

He slowly shook his head. Tifa and Cid noticed how shakey his hand was as it lingerd in the air, and how unsteadlily he'd been. He had a strange evil look in his eyes that the others marked as a strange, cold diffrence.

He was jumping the last platform ans as he reached the top and stared straight into her eyes, witch were still clear and shimmering with hope. Though he still stared back hard at her in her face. Her face still remaind the same and her green sparkling beautiful eyes, still remaind on the floor.

As she knealt there, upon the altar, Aeris was deep into her thoughts and dreams of creating a safe and peaceful future. So deep into thought that she couldn't see anyone, or hear anything. Nothing could wake her. She was whishing for hope, peace, and the safety of earth from the meteor, but none of that matter to Cloud now.

He was staring hard into her eye's and looked at her coldly. His eye brow's lowerd and his nose twisted up in fury. He withdrew his blade and still stared, his expression not moving off her's. Without loosing consentration, he raised his sword above his head and let it hang in the air. What could he be doing? Was he insane? Has he gone mad? Or, has he found his new purpose in life? Sepheroth's shadow? He's always been such a confused soul. Seemed to be lost in a world where he couldn't get a hand to pull him out of a troubled situation.

He had felt love, and comfort before, from his parent's, but his father had died when he was very young, and later on, his mother had gotten sick and dropped down dead, dead. On the cold hard floor, people call, reality... Yes. Those feelings cause him much grief and sorrow, so hard to heal from deavistating losses. Especialy, when everyone is taken away from him. So to never suffer from that pain again, he lock it away into a room in his heart. So, here it is guy's, plain and simple, he has become "Sepheroth's shadow"...

His sword went farther back, now as he gripped harder onto the handle he felt his clammy hands slip and he quickly loosend hid grip and re- tightned it. His sword became very heavy, it felt three times the regular weight. Just then.

The sword came down on Aeris fast... As the blade drew down to her it caught some sunlight and in feriously flickerd around and dissapeard, but the blade was closing in.Closer, closer, closer....

"NOOO! STOP THIS NOW!!!" Tifa voice whailed across the silence.

Cloud, thankfully, heard Tifa, just barley though.

"GAWD! YOU DUMB ASS!"Cid shrieked to Cloud.

Clouds clammy hands had dropped the sword on the ground and the pitch the blade threw loudly rung through the hole place.

"Uhhh, what are you making me do?"Cloud said in a low confused voice as he glance at Aeris.

It appears she had been awoken. Aeris looked up at Cloud and her face brightend up as a flower blooms. She then, flashed her loving smile that made Cloud feel alot better.

He felt the warmth of her all over his body once again. But it wasen't meant to last, Cloud felt the shrill cold air hang in the room again. It was as if the cold air had been frozen and fell to the ground, and something more, a prensince... it was "pure evil".

Cloud had to remember to breathe, the air had been making him gag, and he felt dizzy, light headed. He looked around for what ever it was. Clound was ready, nothing could suprise him, he was expecting the worst. Just then, Cloud shrugged his head up to see him... It looked like something out of a nightmare.

"Sephiroth!"Cloud said in a suggistive tone that he was pretty pissed off.

Cloud was ready for the worst, prepared... but the one thing he wasen't ready for was the crulist... As Sepheroth lept out of the sky to the ground he had his blade withdrawed. Aeris still smiling didn't move her expression off Clouds face.

It was as if she had no time to react, but her smile remained. Then, as Sepheroth neard the floor he lunged himself as hard as he could downward so that the blade would make a clean cut through the back, and it did. It went striaght through Aeris like she was nothing... Cloud could even see the blade come out of the front of her chest.

Aeris, still smiling at Cloud slowly started to drop her head to the floor, couldn't, because the blade was still through her. It prevented her from falling. He slowly removed his bloody blade and licked his lips and looked at Cloud. Then Aeris jerked upward and her mother's momento fell from her bow and off the altar into the waters below. Aeris lost all balance she had left had fell to the floor. Cloud, saw his mother, falling onto the cold hard reality, but then Clouds legs were shaking and they gave way as he fell to his knees, stopping her from hitting the floor.

"Oh, Aeris....no..................NO!"Cloud outbursted as his eyes became backed up with emotions.

"The day has come, for all the Ancients are finally dead. Now all that's left is to summon the black materia's magic, I shall summon it at the snowy feildsand then arrive in the promised la--"

"Shut up! Your stupid plan don't mean a thing. Aeris is gone. Aeris will no longer talk, laugh, cry, or get angry.... What about us? What are we supposed to do? What about my pain? My eyes are burning, my mouth is dry."Cloud said interupting Sepheroth.

"What are you saying, Cloud? Are you trying to tell me you have feelings too?" Sepheroth said coldly.

"Of course I do!What do you think I am? A monster?" Cloud shreiked in a muffled voice because his hands were over his face, trying to work this puzzle, to make sense of it. Someway, anyway...

"No, Cloud. That's not it. Not at all. Cloud, you are..." With that Sepheroth vanished in a puff of smoke.

As his last faint, raspy words ringed loudly all around Cloud and the lifeless Aeris. Cloud buried his face in Aeris and cried.

"This insn't happining! It's not real!" Cloud said muffled, once again, into Aeris.

"Cloud!" Tifa yelled to him. But there was no response or reaction from him. Nothing, he sat there, on his knees, looking down on Aeris.

"Watch out ya big dick!" Cid yelled through Clouds racing thought's.

Cloud looked up and saw the smoke fadded and a monster appeared, Jenova... Cloud showed little care snd turned away from the hideous beast.

He watched over Aeris while the others raced into battle with the monster. Consentrating only on Aeris now, Cloud knealt down a little farther and stared down at her examinating her, checking for movement. Her lips were loosing their rosy pink, along with her cheeks. Her gorgeous smile and turned to a frown and the memmory of her smile Cloud kept very close to him. Her clear green beautiful eyes had now turned to darkness and the green in her eyes was dark deep green. Her cheery red face was expired, she had grown so pale, so very pale.

Cloud shed a tear and softly placed his two fingers over her eye lids and gently closed both of her eyes.

"Please don't, don't leave me. I miss you already." Cloud said, in a choked up voice.

"Aeris!" Tifa yelled in a worried and terrifeid voice.

It had seemed the battle was over and Cid and Tifa all had minor wounds. Cid slowly approached the three and had glossy eyes about to pour out cataracts, but he held them back and said,

"One hell of a flower girl, and a friend." After Cid said this,Tifa outbursted into tears and ran to Cloud.

Cloud stood up with Aeris in both hands and left to the city of the Ainchents, down by the Enchanted Lake, full of pure water. Crystal clear, pure water. Just as clear as Aeris's thought's, soul, and has her eyes used to be. Then, Cloud stepped into the water and felt how cold it was, just as Sepheroth.

He slowly walked in to knee deep and saw that, all of a sudden, it was a straight fall. Then Cloud carefullly and delacately laied her out onto the waterto float on her back and still, he held her from underneath softly. So as he could support her from falling. Then, Cloud started to remember things. Unforgetable, cherished memmories... _(Say, can you be my body gaurd and get me out of here? ---------------------------------------- ------------------------------- (Huh? ;You can do anything, right? ;Yeah.... Well, then take me home. ;Okay, but it will cost ya. ;Ummm, how about a date? ;Well, I guess... -------------------------------------- ---------------------------------)_

"I failed to protect you. There's nothing I can do for you now... I'm so sorry, It's my fault. I will never forget you."

With that, Cloud gently removed his hands from underneath her and she started to gently, slowly, fall. Her hair that was once in a ponytail, started to fray all around her, her ribbon, also, parted from her hair and sank. In silence, he watched her fall, falling to the bottem, and he relized when she reached the bottem, she will hit the ground.

He then rememberd his mother. As he watched her fall he rememberd something more, he uncoverd it. _(------------------------------------------------------------ ----------- ;Cloud. I'm searching for you.;What do you mean? I'm right here. ;No,no. I mean. The real you.;????? I want to meet... you... -- ---------------------------------------------------------------------)_

"You traveled through that cave that night, and, unlike anyone I've ever met before, you decided you wanted to keep going, usally people give up and go on without me, but. Somehow, Aeris, somehow you found the key to the room, and you unlocked it. That night, also, is when I had relized I had loved again. It was LOVE wasen't it? Aeris, you loved me, didn't you? Why? Why didn't I see it before? I'm such a fool, and so weak. So ashamed. Now there's no way, no way that I can tell you that I know, or that I care." Cloud said, it seemed he wasen't talking to Tifa or Cid, but Aeris.

Cloud was astonished. He could barley reconize his own voice. Cid and Tifa were silent. Nobody said a word. Cid's expression was enough. He couldn't hide it, not now. Everyone was crushed. Stillness, silence, nothingness.

Cloud jerked his head around. He stood still, facing the others. His face was twisted up in confusion. His eyes stared hard and straight ahead as he withdrew his own blade. He took it in both hands and looked at his reflection through the sword. He smirked a half smile. Not a happy smile, but a sad, lonley confused smile. Trying very dearly to hold onto the memmory of her smile, at least.

He placed the sword down on the ground still standing in front of the lake. His eyes were a lovley dark blue, the darkness that the others saw out of them was astonishing. His sword sparkled and flickerd in the sunlight, it seemed the sunlight was dancing and gleeming on his blade. He was focused on the reflection as it danced around, everyone was watching the sword. Just standing there, like time had stopped. One girls dreams and hopes for the future were gone, forever. Because of one man. Man? Colud such a vile creature with a cold as ice heart be man? What were the others to do about this event? They couldn't. They watched, they watched her leave them, they watched her fall, and they watched the sword. Tifa and Cid turned their eyes off the sword when three splashes hit the sword, causing a gental sound.

A sound if someone tapped n something so gently as to make a beautiful pitch upon the metal.Two more fell as the sound raced aroung everyone, it echoed through the whole city witch was surrounded by forest. Tifa wanted to run to him, but she knew he hated to be treated like that. Cloud raised his face as another drop fell form his eyes and gently rolled off his cheek into the ground just missing the sword.

"Cloud...?" Tifa said finally, not reconizing her own voice.

He raised his face up to her. Tears running down his cheeksas the old dryed to his face. "

You okay, you wanna say something?" Cid said in a choked and cracked voice.

"I... love Aeris Gainsbrogh." Cloud said as if he wen't too sure.

Tifa felt Cloud grab her heart out of her chest and rip it in two and throw it to the floor.

Her eyes started to water, he had no idea how much he hurt Tifa.

How could he? If only she would tell him. She tryed to walk away as if nothing was wrong but then she busted up in tears.

Cloud thought it was only about Aeris. She was stopped by Cid and they both came back and silently watched Cloud.

Then Cloud shook his head. "But none of that matters anymore. Because I couldn't relize it in time, I was weak and so foolish. I am so very ashamed...

It was as if Cloud could hear nobody. he stepped foward , but then Cloud turned his cheek and headed for the lake. He looked down into the lakeand gazed into it as if in a trance. His eyes were burning with every imaginable feeling. His tears still trickled down his face as the old tryed to dry. The wind against his face was cold and refreshing.

After that Cid stepped up to the lake and looked up into the sky to wait for something to happen, anything. As he patiently waited for about a minute or so of silence, he relized nothing was gonna happen. He then looked back down at the lake and said,

"There goes one hell of a flower girl..." As he spoke his last words to Aeris, one gental sparkling tear arose out of his eye and it ran down his face fast and he caught it and rubbed it away.

Tifa came up closer to the lake by Cid and looked up to where the sunset shed down the beautiful colors the sky had to offer. She then slowly lowerd her head as she looked down into the reflection of the Enchanted Lake and saw her own reflection. She looked very pale herself, and very emotionally faituged from all the stress and upsetting things that had gone on in the past half hour or so. She rememberd when they were going through the winding staircase, and she wasen't as worried as Cloud because Cid made everything seem so positive, even in dark hours. She slowly backed away to Cid and peered over to him. Cid was now crying, not that much, just enough to make everyone think of him in a diffrent veiw. It was uncomfortable for Tifa to sit idly by watching Cid crack. There was a rugged old man with a good sense of humor, and he was staring hard at the lake in tears. They had a hard time to crawl off his face because his whiskers made it tougher for them.

"After everything that has happend, Aeris, would you ever forgive me? For my mistakes, and weaknesses. Aeris... I guess now, after all thats happend. I guess I can admit that I have, fallen for you. So now, Aeris, am I just supposed to let you go? Of course I do, but in my mind. I know, for a fact, that thats not how you would want this to end. That is probably the only other was so, I guess that's goodbye."Cloud utterd these words out and soon passed by the others and again stood in front of the Enchanted Lake.

He bent down and gazed into it. Once again, he saw how still everything was. Then, after another miniute or so, Cloud shed one final tear. It softly and slowley rolled down his cheek and had a hard time dripping off. As it fell Cloud watched. He watched the tear splash into the water and it created ripples. As the ripples were still forming and fading Cloud rememberd the smile, he held onto the memmory, he cherished it.

Afterall, it was really all she left behind. He pictured her once again. Her, standing there, flashing her warm welcoming smile to Cloud. Her smile that made everything clear in her heart. So clear that you could see everything there. So clear, in her heart. Just as Cloud's heart where Aeris shall always stay. Then, he pulled himself to his feet and said,

" Aeris, I'll always remember that smile of your, too bad it was you last......"

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To tell you the truth, I cried while I was typing this. Review if you want... 


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